Prepare - Be Storm Ready

The City of Kissimmee wants to help make sure that our residents and the millions of guests who visit our community each year are storm ready. We have compiled some tips and best practices to help you and your family prepare. Whether a storm impacts our community or not, it's always better to be prepared. For City of Kissimmee storm preparation information, follow our Twitter account @CityofKissimmee and choose to receive alerts.

2018 Hurricane Season

When is Hurricane Season?

The 2018 Atlantic Hurricane Season begins on Friday, June 1 and ends on Friday, November 30. The City of Kissimmee encourages our residents and guests to follow the best practices from Ready.gov and FloridaDisaster.org.

GET A PLAN

One of the most important parts of being storm ready is to make a plan. FloridaDisaster.org encourages the following three step towards getting a family plan.

Step 1: Put together a plan by discussing these 4 questions with your family, friends, or household to start your emergency plan.

How will I receive emergency alerts and warnings?

What is my shelter plan?

What is my evacuation route?

What is my family/household communication plan?

Step 2: Consider specific needs in your household.

Tailor your plan and prepare supplies that will adjust to your specific daily living needs and responsibilities. Discuss your needs and responsibilities and how people in the network can assist each other with communication, care of children, business, pets, or specific needs like the operation of durable medical equipment. Create your own personal network for specific areas where you need assistance.

CITY OF KISSIMMEE HURRICANE SEASON PREPARATION WEEK

June 1 through June 7 is Hurricane Preparation Week in the City of Kissimmee. The purpose of this initiative is to encourage residents to prepare their family and property for Hurricane Season. As we set aside time as a community, we hope that even more households will be able to make necessary plans and preparations. The City of Kissimmee Hurricane Season Preparation Week coincides with the State of Florida tax free week, which was issued to allow residents to purchase supplies as Hurricane Season begins.

During the City of Kissimmee Hurricane Season Preparation Week we encourage residents to make the following preparations.

Step One - Build or restock your Basic Disaster supply Kit.

Ready.gov recommends that your basic emergency supply kit include the following items.

Water - one gallon of water per person per day for at least three days (for drinking and sanitation)

You can download an even more details Emergency Supply List from FEMA here.

Step Two - Prepare your property.

Making a few preparations to your home before a storm is approaching can go a long way to making your home safer. Here are a few recommended preparations that you can do during the City of Kissimmee Hurricane Preparation Week.

Trim low-hanging limbs from trees

Clean out gutters

Check exterior walls and roof for weak points that could be vulnerable to high winds. Make necessary repairs.

Make a list of all of the items outside of your house that would need to be moved or secured if a hurricane were approaching. Include in your list where you would move each item to and how you would secure it.

If you plan on covering your windows with plywood, measure the size of plywood that you would need for each window. Purchase the plywood now and cut it to size. You can even number or mark each piece of plywood for quick assembly when it's time for it to be installed.

Step Three- Know what your insurance covers

It's important to know what your insurance covers before a storm affects your property. Here are some important questions to ask when looking at your policy or talking to your insurance agent.

What is the number to call if I need to file a claim?

What is my deductible?

Do I have flood insurance? If not, how much would flood insurance cost?